This Flight Simulator 2004 aircraft was produced with Abacus FS Design Studio 3.5.1, FS Panel Studio 2004, and Paint Shop Pro X.
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Installation FS2004:
-Extract the contents of the main zip file S42NR823.zip into FS2004's Aircraft folder. This should create a structure something like the following:
- c:\Program Files\Microsoft Games\Flight Simulator 9
--- Aircraft
----- Sikorsky S-42 NR823M
-------- model
-------- panel
-------- sound
-------- texture
-Once these files are extracted, Flight Simulator 2004 should exhibit a new entry under Aircraft/Select Aircraft on the menu bar:
--Sikorsky / S-42 Pan American Clipper NR-823M
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Flying the S-42:
The S-42 is a flying boat. It lands and takes off from water. You can fly from seaplane runways like X44 Miami FL, NK30 Brooklyn NY, 07L Agawam MA, or 22CA Sausalito CA. It does not have true landing gear, but it does have beaching gear, which allows it to be positioned on land at an airport at flight startup. MAKE SURE YOU GET RID OF THE GEAR WHEN STARTING A FLIGHT FROM WATER. Use the G key to attach or detach the beaching gear. If you want, you can take off and land on the beaching gear, but this is not realistic behavior. The beaching gear was NOT RETRACTABLE, but was floated out to the plane and attached in the water before towing the plane up on shore for maintenance. Once back in the water, the beaching gear was detached and floated away before takeoff.
Use the Exit command (Shift-E) to open and close the passenger and cargo hatches.
There are small icons in the 2D panel for displaying the electrical panel (including engine starters), engine instruments, ADF radio, overhead panel, overhead throttle levers, checklists, ATC window, map window, and GPS.
See the kneeboard checklist for manual engine starting procedures. You can start the engines with the Magneto/starter switches in the Virtual Cockpit, or on the 2D electrical panel.
Engine instruments for the pilot and copilot show engine 1 on the left, engine 4 on the right. Flight engineer's engine instruments are reversed: engine 4 on the left, engine 1 on the right. The flight engineer faced aft when looking at the panel.
Fuel quantity is in gallons. The long-range version of NR-823M had 1240 gallons in wing tanks like NC-822M, but also had a number of extended-range tanks in the fuselage cabins.
For assistance with the Sperry Autopilot, see the Microsoft Flight Simulator Learning Center, Index (letter D), Douglas DC-3, Flight Notes, Using the Autopilot.
The virtual cockpit may be better viewed if you hit the minus (-) key once or twice, to get back to a 75% or 50% zoom.
Virtual Cockpit How To:
--- Ctrl-Shift-Enter to move right
--- Ctrl-Shift-Backspace to move left
--- Ctrl-Enter to move aft
--- Ctrl-Backspace to move forward
-See the navigation room --- Ctrl-Enter to move aft, Shift-Backspace to move down
Flaps How To:
-The S-42 flap control consisted of two levers, marked T and C. The combination of the two lever positions determined the flap setting. The levers were on the ceiling of the cockpit on the center line.
--- Flaps up: both forward
--- Flaps 10 degrees (takeoff): T forward, C back
--- Flaps 40 degrees (landing): both back
Engine How To:
-Adjust Prop Pitch --- 2D Main panel - black levers above windshield in center
3D Cockpit - black levers on ceiling
Click and drag up to increase prop RPM, down to decrease.
-Feather Props --- 2D Main panel - red levers above windshield in center
3D Cockpit - red levers on ceiling behind pilot seats
Click on "Propeller Brakes" levers (non-animated).
-Adjust Mixture --- 2D Engine inst panel - red levers at top left.
3D Cockpit - red levers on back wall of cockpit.
Click and drag to set.
-Adjust Carb Heat --- 2D Engine inst panel - green levers at top.
3D Cockpit - green levers on back wall of cockpit.
Click to toggle on/off.
-Adjust Throttle --- 2D Main panel - duplicate sets of levers hanging down.
3D Cockpit - duplicate sets of levers above pilot and copilot
Click and drag to set.
Radio How To:
ADF radio (only 1) affects the radio compass with the red needle. It picks up NDB signals.
Nav radio (1 or 2) affects the radio compass with the green needle. It picks up VOR signals.
-Select ADF Radio Frequency: --- Select the frequency band using the upper 4-position switch on the ADF radio. Select the frequency by clicking to the right or left of the tuning knob in the middle of the radio. Left to decrease, right to increase. The ADF radio is at the top of the radio operator's panel (2D and 3D panels).
-Select Nav Radio Frequency: --- Click outside the image of the tuning knob to change the frequency unit values (110, 111, 112, etc.). Left of center to decrease, right of center to increase. Click within the image of the tuning knob to change the fractional frequency (110.100, 110.150, 110.200, etc.). Left of center to decrease, right of center to increase.
-Select Nav1 or Nav2: --- Use selector knob between tuning knobs in the middle of the Nav radio. Click on the knob to toggle between Nav1 and Nav2 as the source for the radio compass with the green needle.
-Hear the Morse Code signals from the radios: --- Click the round Audio knob on the ADF radio or each Nav radio to toggle sound off and on.
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Known issues:
-Performance. The real S-42 could land at 65 mph, but it is difficult to get this model to do that. With full flaps on landing, it requires a lot of up elevator trim.
-Non-historically realistic controls:
-- Fuel Selector Switch (2D and 3D engine instr panel): The fuel selector switch (Wing tanks / Aux tanks) is fictitious. The actual plane likely had a complex system of valves and may have been able to direct fuel from the aux tanks to the wing tanks, but I found no documentation of that system.
-- Fuel Flow Gauges (2D engine instr panel): I added these gauges instead of fuel pressure gauges. Rate of fuel consumption is critical to achieving the desired range, and these gauges make it easier to track.
-- Radio Direction Finders: This model uses ADF and RMI direction finder displays. No evidence that the S-42 actually had these advanced displays.
-- Flap Deflection indicator (2D and 3D main panels): Instead of a flap motor pressure gauge.
-- Elevator Trim indicator (2D and 3D main panels): Instead of propeller brake pressure gauge.
-- Outside Air Temp gauge (2D and 3D main panels): Shown as a blank space in photos.
-Non-functioning controls:
-- Fire extinguishers (3D ceiling), Fuel Dump (3D ceiling), Autopilot speed valves (2D and 3D), Automixture levers (2D and 3D).
-Sound. To save space, this model comes with a sound.cfg file that points to a default sound package, the DC-3.
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Authorship:
The visual model is completely original. It is based on drawings from Sikorsky Aviation, multiple reference books (see below), and photographs taken at the New England Air Museum.
The textures are original.
Most of the gauges are modified from XML gauges supplied in FS2004. Many gauge images were adapted from photographs taken at the New England Air Museum.
Flight dynamics have been modified by Jim Douglass. Performance of this model should be more realistic than the previous model NC-822M, which was too fast at altitude. Any flaws or failings in this model remain my own responsibility.
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Special Thanks:
Jim Douglass, for flight dynamics modifications.
New England Air Museum (Windsor Locks, Connecticut, http://www.neam.org/)
Personnel:
-Michael Speciale, Executive Director, for permission to photograph at the museum.
-John Craggs, volunteer, for assistance in multiple photo and research sessions.
-Tom Palshaw, volunteer, for assistance in flight instrument photo session.
-Al Charlevois, former Pan Am pilot and museum docent, for invaluable reference data. Al made a trip to the University of Miami to gather photos and documents from the Richter library there. Much of this information is not found in any published reference.
Icarus Books (http://www.icarusbooks.com/):
-Bob Repich, for a microfilm copy of the Sikorsky S-42-A handbook, which now resides in the New England Air Museum.
Otto G. Richter Library, University of Miami; Pan American World Airways, Inc., Records Collection
(Coral Gables, Florida, http://scholar.library.miami.edu/panam/):
-For providing access and materials during the research visit of Al Charlevois from the New England Air Museum. The Richter Library is the repository of the Pan Am archives.
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Background:
The Sikorsky S-42 NR-823M (c/n 4201) was the second of 10 S-42s produced by Sikorsky for Pan American Airways.
Construction of the S-42's occurred from 1934 to 1936. The S-42 was a successor to the Sikorsky S-40.
The S-42 was designed to carry 32 passengers on daytime flights. Some later models could be configured for overnight flights for 14 passengers.
Passengers entered the plane through the hatch at the top of the rear fuselage. A forward door was used for loading crew, cargo and supplies.
There was a galley with sink and pantry to serve meals in flight. Small tables stowed in the steward's compartment could be brought out and set up in the passenger cabins, one table for each group of 4 passengers.
=This Aircraft NR-823M:
This plane was originally designated NC-823M, and was named "West Indies Clipper." It was delivered to Pan American in December 1934. It was re-named "Pan American Clipper" for use in long-range Pacific route survey flights in 1935, and re-designated NR-823M.
As NR-823M, the plane was not allowed to carry passengers. The internal layout of this model is based on a cutaway drawing from about 1935. All passenger seats were removed. The first cabin was converted to a master navigation room. The second and third cabins were shown with auxiliary fuel tanks. The fourth cabin was shown with bunks for the crew.
It was renamed "Hong Kong Clipper" in 1937. The plane was sunk in August 1944 at Antilla, Cuba.
A file containing the details of the Pacific survey flights is provided separately as S42PacificSurveyFlights1935.txt.
=Other S-42 facts:
.No S-42s survive today.
.The first S-42 cost $197,892.
.The first S-42 (NC-822M piloted by Boris Sergievsky) set 10 world's Class C-2 Seaplane records for payload, speed, altitude, and distance on May 17 and August 1, 1934.
--Speed with payload over 1000km distance: 157.7 mph with 0, 500kg, 1000kg, and 2000kg loads.
--Speed with payload over 2000km distance: 157.5 mph with 0, 500kg, 1000kg, and 2000kg loads.
--Load to altitude: 7533.33kg (16608 lbs) to 2033.5m(6671.7 feet).
--Load to altitude: 5000kg (11023 lbs) to 6203.6m(20406.7 feet).
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References:
New England Air Museum, Bradley International Airport, Windsor Locks, CT
Sikorsky Aviation, 'S-42-A Handbook, Part 1', 1934, now in the New England Air Museum Library
'S-42 Seaplane Specifications', 1934, now in the New England Air Museum Library
Roy Allen, 'The Pan American Clipper', Barnes & Noble Books 2000 via Amber Books, London N1 9PF
Joseph Juptner, 'US Civil Aircraft Vol. 6', McGraw-Hill 1997
Stan Cohen, 'Wings to the Orient', Pictorial Histories Publishing 1998
Francis Chapman, 'Talking to the World from Pan Am's Clippers', Carstens Publications 1999
Boris Sergievsky, 'Airplanes, Women, and Song', Syracuse University Press 1999
Kevin Holcomb, Website http://www.airminded.net/ 'Holcomb's Aerodrome'. S-42 is under Golden Age Aircraft
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This model is freeware.
All comments and suggestions welcome.
E-mail: george_diemer@msn.com
